by peter e. bortner
Girardville borough officials asked Schuylkill County Court on Friday to allow them to take possession of and demolish, a dilapidated house on Main Street.
The house at 13 E. Main St. is caving in and poses a threat to the neighborhood, the borough alleged in its petition.
"The (building) is in such disrepair and is so dilapidated that the structure is in danger of imminent complete collapse," according to the petition.
Girardville asked the court to appoint it conservator of the property and authorize its demolition under the state Abandoned and Blighted Property Conservatorship Act,
Butler and Foster townships already have used the act to take possession of blighted properties. Foster Township used it to begin the rehabilitation of the old James Neale mansion in Buck Run.
In the petition, Girardville alleged that the house on the property, which is owned by Terrence and Claudette Hodge, is beyond salvage.
"(It) is a public nuisance. (It) is unfit for human habitation, occupancy or use," the petition reads in part.
No one has legally lived in the house, and no rehabilitation work has been performed on it, for at least a year, according to the petition.
"(It) is an attractive nuisance for illicit purposes, including drug use and vagrancy," the petition reads in part.
Additionally, the property's condition increases the danger of fire, unauthorized entry, injuries to children and other health and safety hazards that the owners have not tried to remedy, and decreases other property values in the neighborhood, the petition reads in part.
The borough alleged it already has issued two citations to Terrence Hodge, charging that the building's condition violates its Property Maintenance Code.
